Kaveri Falls. - Gagana Chukki on west branch.

This photograph of the Kaveri Falls, Mysore taken in the 1890s by an unknown photographer, is from the Curzon Collection's 'Souvenir of Mysore Album'. The Kaveri Falls are otherwise called the Sivasamudram Falls. The branches of the stream which enclose the island of Sivasamudram form the picturesque falls of the Gagana Chukki ("Sky Spray") on the Mysore side, and of Bhar Chukki ("Heavy Spray") on the Coimbatore side, each of which makes a descent of about 300 ft. in succession of beautiful rapids and broken cascades. The Gagana Chukki is approached by a steep path leading down from the tomb of Pir Sahib, a Musalman saint. The stream here is divided so as to form a small island. The parted waters dash with a deafening roar over vast boulders of rock in a cloud of foam to unite again in a deep pool below.